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| Sunday, 27 November 2005 |
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Lanka leads in tea exports by Elmo Leonard Sri Lanka is the leading exporter of tea in the world notwithstanding that Kenya's 2004 figure of 326,000 tonnes foreign sales, exceeds Lanka's shipments of 290,000 tonnes during that year.
Kenya who for around a decade running played second fiddle to Sri Lanka as the leading exporter of tea, volumewise, suddenly showed a 21 percent increase in her 2004 export figure, over that of 2003, as international tea statistics show. Kenya's January to end-September '05 export was 270,000 tonnes, while the African nation's production for the same period was 236,000 tonnes. Mombasa is also a port town through which African teas are shipped. The multi-supplied Mombasa tea auction centre handles teas from Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwandi, Burundi, Zimbabwe and smaller African producer nations. These teas could be computed as Kenyan exports. The only other African tea auction centre is Limbe in Malawi. Sri Lanka's end-September 2005 export was 225,000 tonnes, and her production 239,000 tonnes. During this period, Sri Lanka imported 7.19 million kilograms, amounting to 3 per cent of its production for blending and re-export. While Sri Lanka's tea industry is over 130 years in existence, and transparent, the African nation is a relatively new entrant to tea and much less is known about African tea statistics. Sri Lanka's domestic consumption is around 20 million kilos (20,000 tonnes) while Kenya, with a larger population is known to consume more tea. India, the third largest exporter of tea in the world up to end-August this year produced 533,000 tonnes. India, who has a very high domestic consumption of tea, up to end-August this year exported 103,000 tonnes, according to international tea statistics. Sri Lanka's tea production in 2004 was 308,000 tonnes, North India - 663,000 tonnes; South India - 193,000 tonnes; Malawi - 50,000 tonnes and Kenya - 324,000 tonnes according to Sri Lanka Tea Review 2004 put out by tea brokers, Forbes and Walker. |
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